Man Jailed for Child Sexual Abuse Offences Following Police Operation

Anthony Dugard, a 60-year-old man from Grimsby, Lincolnshire, has been sentenced to four years in prison after being found guilty of nine child sexual abuse offences. In July, Dugard traveled to Swindon with the intention of abusing a child he believed he was meeting. Instead, he was intercepted by officers from the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit (SWROCU) as part of an initiative to combat child sexual abuse and exploitation. Following his apprehension and a subsequent examination of his mobile phone, police discovered that Dugard had previously committed additional offences against a child who was 15 years old at the time. Dugard was charged and later pleaded guilty to five further child sexual abuse offences. It was established that Dugard had coerced and exploited the girl over several months. Her mother informed the court that he had made her feel as though she had “let her daughter down massively.” In a personal impact statement, the mother expressed being “so sorry” that she could not “protect” her daughter and commended her for speaking out. Her statement read, ““[She] has made me very proud by speaking out and in knowing that she will have helped many others in doing so”.” Detective Inspector David Wells from SWROCU commented: ““Dugard has caused substantial suffering to the victim and her family and I thank her for speaking up about his predatory behaviour.”” Dugard has been placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life and will be subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for a period of 15 years. For further updates, BBC Wiltshire can be followed on Facebook, X, and Instagram. Story submissions are accepted via email or WhatsApp at 0800 313 4630. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC disclaims responsibility for the content of external websites. Details on our external linking approach are available.